F is for Fire
by nicol-leoraine
Summary: A group of smugglers trying to sell a van full of abnormals, an empty warehouse and a fire elemental on the loose don't bode well for our team. Cue in Magnus and Will in trouble.


**A/N**: Written for the alphabet_soup challenge over at LJ. Prompted by Katikat, beta-read by Tania.

**F is for Fire**

It was supposed to be a simple raid. Well, nothing was really simple at the Sanctuary, but Will thought they were entitled to a break once in a while. When Kate got the intel about a shipment of abnormals in the Old Town, Magnus told them to gear up. They didn't have much time to prepare. If Kate's informant was right, the shipment was already on the road. There was no time to lose. Packing up, they took Henry's van and another car and headed out.

The warehouse the deal was supposed to go down in was in the industrial part of the Old Town, near the river. It was the middle of the day, but they had had heavy rain for almost two days and everyone were staying inside, so the neighborhood was pretty much devoid of traffic and people. The perfect place to do some business.

They parked the van on a nearby lot. Henry turned on his scanners and they soon had a thermal picture of the warehouse. It looked like the shipment had already arrived. There were three people inside and several different abnormal, if Will could guess by the strange thermal readings.

"Three to four, I like the odds," Henry spoke with a grin but Magnus shook her head.

"I'm afraid it will be an even fight. I need you to stay here and monitor the situation, in case another buyer hasn't yet arrived or something goes wrong."

"Aw doc, you aren't serious? This is my chance to check out the new pulse gun in action!" Henry whined. Kate patted him on the shoulder, and with a smirk grabbed the pulse gun.

"I'll be happy to make the trial run for you, Henry," she said and Magnus exchanged a pained look with Will.

"There will be no shooting or test trials of the pulse gun, unless the situation calls for it," she admonished them and exited the van.

"Well, maybe the situation will call for it," Kate winked at Henry and he gave her a thumbs up.

"Let's hope not," Will muttered as he followed Magnus out into the pouring rain, Kate right behind him, leaving Henry in the warm and dry van. _Lucky bastard_, Will thought as he brushed water out of his eyes. Only a minute outside and he was already drenched to the bone. Magnus was waiting for them by an open door.

"We don't have all day," she said reproachfully as Kate closed the door and squeezed the water from her hair.

"Henry? Do you have a visual?" Will spoke into the radio.

"Yeah, they're still in the loading area. You're seventy yards south from their position."

"Is there any motion?"

"Looks like they're moving some of the abnormals around. I think the buyer is already there and looking at the merchandise. Oh, by the way, I've got a satellite image, and there's a car with another guy inside parked on the other side of the warehouse."

"Okay, thanks. Keep an eye on it Henry," Magnus said and pointed ahead. "This way, shall we?"

The warehouse used to serve as a storage and packing area for a big pharmaceutical firm, but it had moved out and left the lot temporarily empty. It was extensive, with smaller rooms filled with shells, several offices and a small packaging line that was half dismantled. It looked like the place had been abandoned only a short time ago, and that it could be rented to another business soon without a need to invest in too many repairs.

"You're getting pretty close. Ten yards and you should enter the loading area." Henry's voice cracked in the radio. "You should also step it up a little. I think they're just about done checking the merch."

Just as Henry said, they reached the door to the loading area.

"What's their position Henry?"

"Ten yards, to the right from the door. They're on the other side of the van, you should be able to enter without them noticing."

Guns ready, Magnus gave a silent signal and opened the door. Kate and Will followed her inside, stepping silently and carefully as they took in the situation. A big white van was parked near the closed gate. The van doors were open and Will could see crates with smaller abnormals huddling inside. There was a big cooler sitting on the floor, grabbing Will's attention. They heard voices and rough laughter as a man commented on the price. Exchanging silent signals, they moved onwards.

Cries of "Drop your weapons!" and "Get down!" sounded as the trio tried to round up the smugglers, who were leaning over an egg, studying it, an open case of money laying next to them. It looked like the raid was over before it even started. One man, probably the buyer, raised his hands up in the air almost instantly. Another guy reached into his pocket, but before he could do anything more, Kate shot him with the pulse gun. He was thrown against the van and slid down, unconscious, while everyone else blinked at the bright flash the gun had produced. Magnus didn't get the chance to berate her for that though, because the third man used the distraction to throw himself under the van, rolling out the other side, right next to the big cooler. Will and Magnus both moved after him, but they weren't fast enough. The man swiftly punched in a code and opened the lid.

"Bloody hell," Magnus cursed as she saw a fire elemental swishing out of its containment. The man smirked and started for the door through which they'd come. Magnus fired off two rounds, one of them grazing the man's shoulder, but the fire elemental rose high above them, the air around it sparking.

"Get the van out of there!" Magnus shouted at Kate, who was currently patting down the buyer for guns.

"What's going on?" Kate asked, and then saw the fire elemental and cursed. She looked at the unconscious guy, then at the closed gate door. "To hell with it. You... Help me get him into the van!" she shouted at the other guy. "And don't try anything funny or you'll end up like him," she warned and the guy nodded.

"What now?" Will asked Magnus, watching as the fire elemental swished through the air above their heads. It was getting hotter by the minute and Will could see sparks landing on wooden crates.

"We need to contain it until we figure out a way to get it back into the cooler. Preferably before it burns down the whole warehouse."

"Guys? Can anyone open the gate?" Kate called even as she closed the door of the van, one unconscious bad guy and one conscious but handcuffed buyer stuffed in the back along with the abnormals.

Will rushed to the gate only to find it locked up. Not wasting time looking for a key, he shot off the bolt and pushed the gate open. Kate was already sitting behind the wheel, starting up the van.

"Coming?" She shouted but Magnus shook her head, eyes locked on the elemental. When the gate opened it headed towards it but made a quick u-turn the moment the first raindrop fell through the threshold. The elemental circled the loading area, setting several empty crates on fire before finding the door his captor had escaped through, following him out.

"Henry, take care of the driver," Magnus said into the radio, ignoring Henry's questions about the situation. "Will, go with Kate. I need to catch that man."

"What? Are you insane? He is probably long gone. We have bigger problems than that guy right now!"

"Henry, did anyone leave the building?" Magnus asked, not paying attention to Will's frustrated sigh.

"Negative, doc. I saw someone running towards the office area, but there was a thermal spike and I can't see anything now. Sorry."

"Magnus, you can't be serious," Will repeated himself and Magnus looked at him, irritated.

"Either go with Kate or stay with me, I don't care. But I'm going after that man. I'm sure you saw him putting that Precalyx egg into his jacket before he ran out on us. I'm not letting him get away with that creature. It's almost extinct!"

"We will be too if we stay inside the warehouse," Will grumbled, but shook his head. He ran up to the van, patting the door on Kate's side.

"Get out, Kate!" He waved toward her.

"What about you and the doc?"

"We need to rescue one abnormal. Just go." She seemed ready to protest but a gust of wind brought the fire to life and smoke started filling the loading area. The abnormals in the van felt the danger and started panicking, screeching and trashing around. It was time to go.

"Be careful," Kate told him then stepped on the gas.

_Yeah, aren't we always?_ Will thought and headed after Magnus who had already vanished inside the warehouse.

He must've taken longer than he thought, or Magnus was much quicker on her feet than he gave her credit for, but when he got back to the corridor they came in from, it was empty. Well, as empty as it could be if one didn't count a clear trail of flames licking at the ceiling where the fire elemental must've passed. Will paused, realizing the flames would only get worse. It was already getting harder to breathe as the smoke filled the corridor. Taking off his jacket, Will was momentarily thankful for the rain outside. His shirt was still wet from it. Pulling it over his head, he was glad he was wearing more layers, otherwise he would've had to stay shirtless. This way, he still had his undershirt and his jacket. Closing it up, Will folded up his wet shirt and rolled it over his face like a scarf for protection. That was better.

It was time to start moving again. The trail of flames was a pretty clear indication of where the fire elemental passed through, which was probably the way Magnus went as well, Will thought, and followed the trail, hoping he was right.

"Magnus? Where are you?" He asked, remembering that he still had the radio.

"At the offices," came the hushed answer and Will let out a relieved sigh. "I saw the guy heading there. Where are you?"

"Following the burning breadcrumbs," Will muttered and cursed as he saw a flare of red rushing right at him.

"Shit!" He shouted and ducked, feeling the scorching heat against his back. Yelping, he rolled on the floor, trying to stifle the burn.

"Will!" He heard Magnus call from the radio, but didn't have the time or the breath to answer. The fire elemental was back and it looked happy to have a target. Will jumped to his feet and ran, ducking behind a corner just as the fireball passed him. There were flames licking at the walls and smoke filling the space. It was hard to breathe and harder to think, but Will knew he had to escape, to hide. He saw the elemental turning and he could have sworn the crackling sound it gave was a laugh as it launched himself at him. Backing up against the wall, Will's hands groped about trying to find anything he could use to protect himself. His hand hit a doorknob.

Not hesitating, Will jerked the door open and jumped inside, slamming it shut. Not a second later there was a crash as the elemental slammed into the door. If it had been wooden, Will had no doubt the elemental would've burnt right through and left only his charred remains behind. As the door was made of steel though, there was only a distinct glow where the elemental met the surface. There were several repeated hits as the elemental tried to get inside, the door burning white hot, and Will instinctively took a step back, only to hit a shelf. Several items fell to the floor, but he didn't pay any attention to them.

He couldn't believe how this day turned out. He was stuck in a _broom_ closet, with a pissed off fire elemental trying to make a snack out of him, while the building was slowly burning down. Unbelievable. Will gave a frantic chuckle and slid down to the floor. What was even better, he'd lost his radio during his hasty escape so there was no way of telling Magnus where he was. Though he assumed if Magnus caught the bad guy and started looking for the fire elemental, she should find him. The question though, was if Will had that much time. While the door looked firm enough, the constant attacks of the elemental didn't help. The closet was small and the heat was rising.

Will was also starting having doubts about the amount of oxygen available to him. So far there was no smoke inside the closet, but the air was hot. Sweat started dripping down Will's face and running down his back, which reminded him of the fire on his back. It didn't feel like the blistering pain he felt when he burned his hand as a kid, but rather like a really bad sunburn covering most of his back. Hissing, Will took off his jacket, feeling the scorched material. The undershirt was already clinging to him, wet with sweat so Will left it on. For a moment he thought about taking off his pants to cool down, but he had no intention of being found and rescued in his underwear. Alive or dead. It was humiliating enough that he needed rescue in the first place. The fire elemental seemed to have stopped his attack on the door, but Will could still hear it swishing in the hall and he had no intention of opening the door to risk a look. Not to mention the doorknob was still glowing from the heat.

Several more minutes passed and Will was feeling the panic raise. His lungs started burning and he was sure there was not enough air. Lightheaded, Will groped around, trying to find something useful, but finding only brooms and some cleaning materials. Grabbing his jacket, Will started contemplating if he should wrap it around his hand and try opening the door. At the moment he wasn't sure if he'd rather risk being burned by an elemental, than choke to death. Because the air was definitely getting thinner. He was making up the courage to touch the handle and rush out, taking in big gulps of air just to get up to a standing position, when he heard a muffled voice. Pausing, Will closed his eyes and just listened. It was definitely Magnus, shouting and coming closer. The swishing sound changed in intensity and soon it was gone. Along with Magnus.

Moaning, Will leaned against the shelf. He should've called out. Didn't she know he was locked up here waiting for rescue?

Will paused, and then slammed his head against the shelf, feeling like a total idiot. If anyone asked, he would blame the hypoxia.

"I'm not locked up," he told himself. "The door's just closed." The only reason he hadn't left the closet yet was because the fire elemental was waiting for him on the other side. But now it was gone. So no reason to stay there and suffocate anymore. No need to wait for rescue either. Feeling his mood lift by this discovery, Will re-wrapped his hand with the jacket and turned the doorknob. Only the door didn't open. Blinking in confusion, Will jerked the handle, and then knocked into the door, hissing when his knee accidentally touched the hot steel. The door didn't budge.

"The lock must've melted," he realized in horror and sank down the floor. He was trapped and if Magnus didn't come back soon, he would really die. He was starting to panic again, his breathing growing more and more labored as there wasn't enough air to fill his lungs. The rush of blood in his head was so loud that Will didn't hear the initial calls. It took a loud smack on the door to grab his attention.

"Magnus?" He croaked but there was not enough force behind it to be heard through the door.

"Will? Are you there?"

"Yeah," he gasped, and then realized he would need to make a louder sound, before they decided he wasn't in the closet and went looking for him elsewhere. Using the last of his energy, he kicked the door with all his might.

"Okay, we hear you. Hang on, Henry's bringing a crowbar, we will get you out."

Will wanted to feel relieved, but he had trouble focusing enough to understand all that was being said. All he took in was that he had to wait. Clenching his teeth, Will prayed they would get to him before his lungs gave up. He closed his eyes and gave into the darkness.

He felt something wet and cool running down his eyes, across his closed eyelids. There were hands holding him up, moving him somewhere. He didn't care who the hands belonged to, or where he was being taken. All he cared for was the fact he could breathe. He gulped down the oxygen, feeling the fresh air, tasting the rain.

ooo

The next time he woke up, it was in a bed in the infirmary. The clock on the wall signaled that it was either the middle of night or early afternoon. By the resting form of Helen Magnus in the bed next to his, Will thought middle of the night was a more probable choice.

Not wanting to wake up Magnus, but feeling the need to take care of some business, Will carefully sat up. The room spun, but after several deep breaths it stayed still. Happy with it, Will put his bare feet on the floor, enjoying the cool feeling of it. Leaning against the IV pole he gingerly stood up, stifling a groan as the skin on his back protested the stretch. It felt like a really bad sunburn. Making his way over to the bathroom, Will took a look at Magnus as he passed her, happy to see no signs of injury, just the sleep of the tired. She was lying on top of the covers, across the bed, as if she just decided to sit down and fell asleep. Chuckling at the image, Will headed for the bathroom.

"You know you scared a few years off of me," Magnus welcomed him as he returned back to his bed. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking tired, but smiling.

"If anyone could afford it, it's you," Will replied with a smile of his own and carefully sat down on the bed. "Was it that bad?" He asked after a moment, the smile leaving his face.

"We've been in worse," Magnus said, though the look in her eyes said something else. Will realized that she _was_ scared for him and somehow it made him feel warmer inside. Not that he would admit that out loud.

"Thanks. For the rescue, I mean. Not for running inside the burning warehouse chasing after some smuggler. By the way... What happened?"

"You're welcome," Magnus said with a smile that turned into a yawn.

"Maybe you should get more sleep," Will offered, even thought he was dying to hear what had happened.

"And leave you pondering how you came to be rescued? Nope. I'll tell you and then we're both going to get some sleep. Deal?"

"No protest from me," Will replied. "So what happened with that guy?"

"His name's Peters and I caught up with him at the office. He was trying to leave through the back door, which would lead him right towards the backup car. I told him he could leave if he gave me the egg. He didn't agree. Let's say he will be hobbling for a while."

"You didn't... What did you do?" Will asked in disbelief and Magnus had the grace to look sheepish.

"He tried to use the egg as a bargaining chip. He was waving it around, threatening to break it. I shot him in the leg."

"What about the egg?"

"The colouring of the egg told me it was still in the first phase of its cycle. The Precalyx eggs are rather strong during that time, because the fetus is the most vulnerable. Once it grows, it starts absorbing the shell, which changes color. But in this phase, it could survive almost anything. A small fall wouldn't even crack it."

"Cool. What happened then?"

"Henry and Kate took care of the rest of the group, restrained them, and then came in to look for you. I knew you were in trouble since your radio broke."

"How did you find me?"

"We followed the trail of fire," Magnus said with a smile. "It was pretty easy to find the elemental. Seeing it bashing into the door was a clue to your whereabouts."

"So you somehow managed to distract it and then come back and break open the door, right?"

"Close enough. You know that the warehouse was used as storage for pharmaceutical products. There were two cold storage rooms, situated by the offices. All I needed was something to lure the fire elemental with. On my search for Peters I found several bags of polystyrene for packaging. It's highly flammable and I figured the fire elemental would like a quick snack. So I lured him into one of the cold storages, threw in the bag of polystyrene and closed the door. After we pulled you out of that closet and got the van with the abnormals to the Sanctuary, Henry and I returned with proper equipment and a big enough cooler to bring the elemental here."

"Sounds like you had plenty of fun," Will commented, feeling a little stupid for getting stuck in the closet. As if reading his thoughts, Magnus became serious. She sat down on the edge of his bed, putting her hand on his leg.

"It wasn't fun to find you unconscious and barely breathing, Will. For a moment I thought..."

"I'm okay," Will said, touching her hand and giving a small smile. "It was stupid of me to get trapped. I should've tried to run..."

"Maybe. But maybe you wouldn't have been fast enough. I know what kind of damage a fire elemental can do, Will. It's not pretty. Getting into that closet probably saved your life. It also bought us enough time to figure out a way to trap it. And while it was focusing on the door to you, it didn't burn up the whole warehouse."

"So I was useful after all," Will grinned and Magnus laughed, patting him on the cheek.

"Aren't you always? Now get some sleep while you can. As soon as Kate and Henry wake up, they'll be here. Once they realize you're okay, they might have some comments about finding you half naked in the broom closet."

Will groaned, suddenly feeling really happy about his decision to keep his pants on. God knows that Kate was more than capable of snapping a photo of him on her camera for blackmailing purposes.

**The End**


End file.
